Last October, the wife and I went to the United Kingdom in celebration of 25 years of marriage; that’s where the “gay” part came up.

No, I didn’t make some startling revelation …

It was on a bus, a very public display.I was glad we didn’t have young kids with us.Then again, I’ve been bullied on a bus before.

Growing up in rural North Carolina, from first grade till driver’s license, I rode the bus to school.Bus #39.There was another kid, we’ll call him Billy Green, who used to share the bench seat with me.Billy grew up on an egg farm and, honest to goodness, always walked on his tippy-toes like, literally, walking on egg shells – or trying not to.We were quiet.We read books.We were nerdy.We were considered, in the best sense of the word, queer …